Don’t fool yourselves
3 Sep 2012
MARK KEOHANE, in his weekly Business Day column, says South African rugby fans must keep Currie Cup results in context.
The rugby in Cape Town on Saturday was vintage Western Province; a reminder of a golden generation when Province were kings of the domestic castle. They smashed the traditional foe from the north, and they did it emphatically and they did it with style.
It was a fantastic performance from a team who a week earlier lost in Johannesburg to the Lions, who in turn lost at home to Griquas. It was a night of bliss in Cape Town, but it was one night. Enjoy it. Live the 80 minutes and celebrate the match.
If only.
Province, apparently, have turned the corner. Those players who are on national duty are no longer required. Jean de Villiers can head back to Munster and Allister Coetzee has finally broken the shackles of Rassie Erasmus’s supposed dictatorship and defensive diet.
The social network bloggers, predominantly with a Cape Town address, needed no second invitation to tell South Africa and the rest of the world that their team had scored five tries, played rugby apparently foreign to any other team and finally produced the blueprint for the future.
The only thing more painful than a losing Province supporter is a winning one. Win or lose, they remain demanding and nagging and fail to recognise the moment, live the occasion and celebrate the victory.
Defeat is never defeat and victory is never just victory. The passion is the positive, but the ignorance is too much of a negative because of an absolute disregard of context.
This was not a Super Rugby match and it was not a Test match. It was domestic rugby and it is no longer the measurement of our rugby. At least it should not be.
You only have to look at the Lions to know this. Champions of the Currie Cup last year, the Lions ended 15th out of 15 in Super Rugby.
But already the expectation is that Province, in the guise of the Stormers, will dismantle whoever visits Newlands in next year’s Super Rugby contest. Already every Province player is a victim of Heyneke Meyer’s alleged Blue Bulls bias.
Applaud what Province produced at Newlands. How could you not? But for goodness sake take into account the nature of the competition, the absence of so many international players and the fact that Currie Cup league rugby cannot be compared with Super Rugby; let alone Test rugby.
The love for the Currie Cup is a South African strength, but it is also a curse because it provides an escape every year from the reality of Super Rugby. It allows too many to quickly forget why South African teams may have failed when they were asked to consistently beat the best in South Africa, Australia and New Zealand.
The Currie Cup is the feeder to Super Rugby and the two competitions need to be separated, especially in assessing the performance of players.
The giants of the Currie Cup are too often the dwarves of Super Rugby.
Province were superb in beating the Bulls 42-6 in the Currie Cup. The Sharks were marginally better at home in edging the Cheetahs 34-32, and Griquas left Johannesburg victors after an explosive first 30 minutes. It all looked so good when viewed in isolation, just as our rugby always did when the rest of the world refused to play against us.
View the domestic performances as such and don’t make comparisons with Super Rugby and with what is being produced at Test level. It is unfair on the players on national duty.
South African rugby, more than any other southern hemisphere nation, has protected the tradition of its premier domestic competition. The supporters of the game in this country are the reason there is such an interest in the Currie Cup. But the Currie Cup of today does not compare with the pre-professionalism one and Super Rugby. It is secondary in significance and the greater prize is not domestic dominance and bragging rights in October. The greater prize is which South African team can claim glory in Super Rugby.
What happens in the Currie Cup is also no measure of what happens in Super Rugby, just as in Super Rugby, success offers no guaranteed positive in relation to Test rugby.
Which brings me back to Newlands and Johannesburg. Don’t be conned by a belief that the glory of a domestic night — when it all seems so easy and so perfect — is anything but a good night. The euphoria has to be contextualised just as the pessimism has to be bottled on the night of defeat.
Province losing to the Lions a week ago was meaningless in the context of anything beyond the Currie Cup. Equally so, beating the Bulls at home.
Recognise — and don’t confuse — the occasion.
149 Comments
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3 Sep 2012, 10:05 am
“The only thing more painful than a losing Province supporter is a winning one”
winning is painfull dragons
3 Sep 2012, 10:09 am
speak for yourself wrt super rugby keo
i am done and dusted
that ship has sailed for me
have moved on
from here on in its cc in all its glory for me
3 Sep 2012, 10:10 am
didn’t see the bulls game thank heavens. Not interested in what happened, the score says it all.
But is there anything new there from a Bulls perspective. No, not really….our squads have drifted from the sublime to the rubbish on a weekly basis for the past 18 months now.
One thing is for sure….Pine Pienaar will be feeling the pressure now. Ironically, is he a coach fighting a lone battle and have his assistants that have left been replaced yet? Nonetheless, a side with that sort of quality on paper should not be taking 42 points. The players also have plenty to answer for performance wise.
3 Sep 2012, 10:13 am
@Brigadier Van Zyl-3: one week pine pienaar manhandles the sharks and the next get pomped by province…which is the real pine?
3 Sep 2012, 10:19 am
This article’s a bit unfair… I haven’t seen any WP fan comments going to the lengths Keo describes here. Yes, they have been shouting from the rooftops, as most fans do when their team wins a massive derby like this one but I don’t think anyone or at least not EVERYONE (like he suggests) has made it out to be the second coming….
Firstly, the new format of the CC surely means that any win is more impressive than it used to be. Secondly, with the Boks out for both teams its surely an indicator of where the unions are heading. Thirdly, this piece is a little too sour grapey to me, and I don’t know why Keo is being such a wet blanket. I know it’s his job as a sports journalist to cover these sorts of things, but what does he really say here??? He names one team that has performed well in the CC then done badly in the S15 (the lions) and the rest is all rhetoric. I don’t think it’s good enough to come out all scrooge mcduck on WP fans without backing it up with some facts, I know this is just a blog and not SuperSport but come on… Maybe its just me. But everyone’s got their own opinion, and this one doesnt seem particularly well founded.
3 Sep 2012, 10:19 am
@Transformation-4:
why lay into pine alone for what was clearly a player attitude problem.
as a coach you really can only take the horse to the water (i.e. you cant take the field and play the game for them) and whether it chooses to drink the sweet nectar from the lifegiving oasis or not is entirely a decision of its making.
3 Sep 2012, 10:26 am
@i_love_u_bakkiesbotha-6: where am i “laying into” him?
3 Sep 2012, 10:31 am
The Bulls were atrocious on Saturday! They seem to be a bit schizo this season, playing badly every alternate weekend! But they looked absolutely clueless and without heart on Saturday! The players need to take their fair share of responsibility for what happened on the day!
3 Sep 2012, 10:33 am
WP could be on the receiving end of a beating like this on any given weekend, it doesn’t mean the players are k@k just as it doesn’t mean they’re world beaters after a great performance.
Developing youngsters from ALL unions into consistently good players with the greater focus on Super Rugby is how I view CC these days.
3 Sep 2012, 10:37 am
@Transformation-7:
oh i’m sorry, did the real transie not turn up?
which is the real transie…
3 Sep 2012, 10:38 am
5 @ Tarlo
Agree hundred percent.
Jirre Keo who p!issed on your Cornflakes?
The young talent on display was awesome in the 2 games I watched and its great to see youngsters plying their trade without the Springboks around – it was my first time watching players like Blommetjies, Broche and Siyabonga Ntubeni (he was HUGE).
There are others but those 3 really impressed and I think they have big futures. Paul Jordaan is another who is developing nicely.
The preparation for next years S15 actually starts now as coaches look to develop youngsters into their culture and game plan.
The CC is a great competition that maybe doesn’t have Springboks but to see the up and coming talent is great entertainment and a lot more interesting then watching the Lions get handed another 50 point snotting in Super Rugby.
3 Sep 2012, 10:39 am
I believe this statement is completely unfounded. The only team ever to do really poorly in the Super Rugby has been the lions. The cheetahs have improved over the seasons despite their limited resources where the lions have been poorly managed and have lost a lot of quality players over the years. I think that any team that can get the results in the S15 and still managed to produce a winning performance in the CC is on the right track. Keo also forgets to mention that the only reason why these so called minnows don’t perform well is because the s15 is the most demanding competition on the planet. You lose 4 key players and your season is over. The Highlanders were leading in the first half of the season and played some great rugby but after a few injuries and as players started to feel the fatigue their season started to slip really fast.
I would agree, don’t be flummoxed by the CC and believe that your team would do well, but it is also a great comp in terms of entertainment, upsets and expansive rugby.
The bulls on the night were absolutely terrible, their backline never got moving and JJ was once again exposed as a weak defender. WP is producing some good youngsters but so are the Sharks. It’s going to be a hell of a season and I’m going to enjoy every minute of it. Whether province win or lose, as long as they play good rugby I will support them.
For the players the real test is if you can perform in the CC and you can keep up in the S15, you will have a great future ahead of you. One only have to look at Goosen.
3 Sep 2012, 10:39 am
Sorry KEO got question for you. In the latest SA rugby in the article on Bok scrumhalves, Meyer talks about Hougaard having potential and that his scrumhalf skills set is not ready yet as hes played a lot on the wing. He then says that Pienaars skills set is complete and that hes playing great rugby. Why then would he start with Hougaard and not Pienaar? Did you ask as this makes no sense to me?
3 Sep 2012, 10:44 am
@Bok fan-13: Or whoever the writer was, not sure
3 Sep 2012, 10:45 am
This is our year.
3 Sep 2012, 10:49 am
Thats the spirit Gunther, spoken like a true WP supporter
3 Sep 2012, 10:49 am
Firstly , Geluk aan WeeePEEE
At least the younsters showed they want to play rugga , Forwards doing the hard work and backs could play, simple…
I do not agree Keo, we know the situation/position, but to see younsters coming through on next level and to try different game plans , thats the role of cc
I hope Pine decides to change from the Kick and Chase game. For fff sake Pine use your backs or sell the talentr if you are not going to use them. Get your forwards to play. I can not remember once that I saw a WP lock or a prop , but I did see quick ball , that was the key..
3 Sep 2012, 10:50 am
@Tarlo-5:
I have to agree! The Currie Cup in this new format of being played by mostly the second stringers is not the competition it used to be. Winning the Currie Cup is no longer the be all and end all. Winning the Super Trophy is what counts. Vodacom and Currie Cup pretty much the same thing. I’m a Province supporter but I for one don’t think they are the second coming and only judge our performance on playing against the Super teams…
To be honest I don’t really care much about the Currie Cup and see it as a feeder competition for unions… No disrespect only honesty…
3 Sep 2012, 10:52 am
Oh dear. Instead of ranting on about WP fans, should old Keo not be asking WTF is happening in Pretoria?
I feel that all the buying of promising juniors from other provinces is starting to blow up in their faces. Their snatch and grab, then release, recruitment policy was never going to deliver IMHO of course.
A true Bulls team usually has at least 5 players born and bred under the shadow of Loftus and the history of the union.
Looks like most of these youngsters are playing for a salary more than the union.
Just my opinion of course….before the Brig and TicTactoe burst an anal sac.
3 Sep 2012, 10:54 am
@The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged as dog food-19:
3 Sep 2012, 10:56 am
@Transformation-4:
I think we’ll see a lot of inconsistant performances and results throughout the CC while the RC is still on.
3 Sep 2012, 10:57 am
@gunther-15:
What is your opinion of the centre JP du Plessis?- did he not make Sadie and new bok JJ Engelbrecht his beetches?
3 Sep 2012, 10:57 am
Lol @ anal sac!!!
3 Sep 2012, 11:00 am
@ 22 Robzim
I hope him and Broche get to build on their combo – those 2 were very good together. I think its not so much the Bulls midfield who sucked, its more that the Province midfield just schooled them.
3 Sep 2012, 11:01 am
@Robzim-22: Thought he looked full of promise, also liked the look of Brache and that cheetah Ruhle this weekend….of course the acid test is playing against stiffer competition but a lot of these young guys look hungry!! JJ & CJ weren’t as bad as some say, given his side were going backwards all night…
How much better were the CC games to watch than the rubbish the Boks have been dishing up?
3 Sep 2012, 11:05 am
@gunther-15:
3 Sep 2012, 11:11 am
This is Keo’s favourite approach of late – to piss on the parade, point out how he’s seen it all before and how he knows best. “I am a somewhat jaded rugby journalist. Your ideas, your hopes…the dillusion of mere mortals. Listen up peasants.”
Who the hell did you talk to to provoke this article a mere 48 hours later? What negative dross to read on a Monday morning. Who cares who won or that it’s the Currie Cup? At a time when SA rugby looks boring and one-dimensional, it was a pleasure to watch a game where it actually looked like some South African rugby players had not had the ambition drilled out of their game. Bonus, it didn’t come at the expense of defensive structures. Celebrate that rather than crush it.
3 Sep 2012, 11:11 am
@Atreides-25: Personally, I much preferred watching the young guys playing with heart and commitment in the CC than the drivel the Boks have been serving up lately. Watching the Boks struggle with this antiquated game plan is heart breaking to me!
I don’t know if we will be able to challenge the convicts on Saturday without at least a 100% improvement or a drastic change in tactics! I’ll still watch in hope but I’m not expecting a victory!
3 Sep 2012, 11:11 am
@Blokkies-24:
@Atreides-25:
Brache certainly has improved since last year. He seems to style his game on the way SBW plays, always looking for that specia offload.
The question is now wheher they can repeat that performance against the Cheetahs next week or whether it was just “one of those nights”.
3 Sep 2012, 11:12 am
Agree Keo, the two comps do need to be separated but I think in terms of CC rugby and S15, each has their own place. Each differ in style and context. I certainly don’t believe that Super rugby is the be all and end all of rugby. We need to stop down-playing a competition that is in danger of becoming a has-been of sporting events. It’s South African, it’s our tradition, it’s our heritage. It will always have things and a certain appeal that S15 can never offer.
3 Sep 2012, 11:12 am
Since Sadie an JJ has been Blou bulle they have not beaten Province or Stormers keep up the good work guys
3 Sep 2012, 11:13 am
Keo is just making stuff up. No-one I know suddenly claims that WP have turned the corner and this is how rugby is to be played blah blah blah.
3 Sep 2012, 11:16 am
@Reserve Naartjie-27:
…errm, I think he wrote this piece for you.
The blind ****** that also finds a banana every so often.
3 Sep 2012, 11:16 am
The good thing with JP Dup is, unlike certain others, he seems to have patience.
He seems to want to play for WP, and is prepared to bide his time and pay his dues (at least it looks that way…until he signs for the Bulls or Sharks I suppose ***bewildered smiley***)
In all honesty, when he came back from Australia, he knew he would have to start at the bottom once again, even though he was one of the most hyped up schoolboy players in the history of the WPRFU.
He apparently said last week, that as a school kid he had dreamed of wearing the blue and white hoops against the Bulls (NorthernT) – which shows some sort of passion still kicking in the kid after his Aussie travels.
There just seems to be a good vibe with this kid (and a lovely step), unlike the Sadies of the world.
Then again, the Sadies of the world serve their purpose as well….other talented kids learn life lessons from the Sadies of the world’s mistakes.
The Bulls have about 8 midfielders in their cupboard, so surely he wouldn’t dream of moving up there….the Sharks, midfield also pretty full….so hopefully he stays here.
3 Sep 2012, 11:17 am
@Robzim-29: Yep, don’t know much about him but he looked good. Even SBW would have been proud of that diving offload! Wish JDV or Frans could offload like that
Jordaan also playing very well
3 Sep 2012, 11:20 am
@The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged as dog food-34: There’s so much talent coming through,(despite what certain kiwi butt holes on this site say) what we need i a coach who can turn them into the best players they can be, and gel them into a unit, rather than moering them all into his little round holes with a sledgehammer…
3 Sep 2012, 11:20 am
@Brigadier Van Zyl-33:
why the hell is m-onkey deleted out?
3 Sep 2012, 11:25 am
@Brigadier Van Zyl-37: Only in SA!! lol
3 Sep 2012, 11:27 am
@Atreides-36:
Not us bagging your team.
Its you own supporters. Which one of us said there was no talent coming through?
Fact is SA won the Junior RWC, that alone says alot.
3 Sep 2012, 11:28 am
Keo, do you want some cheese with that wine. Don’t drop your lip just because your blueHMpussies got smashed. May I point out that we f’d your little pink beeches in the S15 as well…… twice!
3 Sep 2012, 11:29 am
@Hurricane-39: Not you Hurri
3 Sep 2012, 11:33 am
I think Keo is Tacitus.
3 Sep 2012, 11:34 am
@Atreides-36: While I still don’t believe we have the depth NZ have in terms of raw talent (probably because half of our raw talent is told by ‘expert coaches’ they are too small for rugby when they are 6 years old) we certainly have a player base that SHOULD make us 1 or 2 in the world at any given time – no lower than 2.
If I get started on this topic again, Gunther and co will puke. But facts are: we miss out on plensch raw talent because it doesn’t fit the ‘SA rugga profile’ OR we bulk it up with roids and USN kak, teach it to kick, teach it to run into walls and bench press huge weights….what we don’t teach it to do, is think for itself
Just watch any primary school rugby game, and you will clearly see where things already start going wrong for many of our future players.
We have the laziest coaches in the world…….from the bottom – all the way to the top.
They are too lazy to coach, and find it easier to select the biggest kids..
3 Sep 2012, 11:36 am
well, look….it’s not exactly 75-14 was it now?
and that was in Superrugby.
oh, and so was the 43-3 arsewipping, at newlands nogal.
3 Sep 2012, 11:41 am
didn’t see it but did read out it……Dewald Potgieter was booed at the announcement of his 50th CC at newlands, a ground that holds a particularly important memory for him outside of rugby.
classy guys, really classy
3 Sep 2012, 11:43 am
@Brigadier Van Zyl-45: Probably the same toothless half-witted inbred morons who cheer for the kiwis…
3 Sep 2012, 11:43 am
@Brigadier Van Zyl-44: Ah, the Bulls glory days…..How you must miss them….
3 Sep 2012, 11:43 am
Not on the same trend as Keo, but I listened to Allister after the match and he made it clear that the only corner turned was one where players executed the same game plan and strategies they have had during Super Rugby better.
There was no different game plan at hand, no different plan of attack – not from a coaching point of view.
In Allister words, this is what you can expect if we get our game plan right and execute well…
3 Sep 2012, 11:45 am
@Brigadier Van Zyl-45:
Stop trying to deflect the klap you guys got, so he was booed, not nice but it happens. Percy was booed as a Bok at Loftus, now that’s really classy, move on and accept the klap like a man.
3 Sep 2012, 11:48 am
@touch.pause.engage-49:
I live in Pta and go to Loftus a lot. Went to the Bulls Stormers game. The booing around me was so irritating, yet the pottle is calling the kettle black. It happens as you say – move on…
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